Interlocking shingle



SePt- 29, 1931- N. z. BUTTERICK 1,825,576

INTERLOCKING SHINGLE Filed Feb. 4, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l Snot neu 4 Sept 29, 1931- N. z. BUTTERICK 1,825,576

INTERLOCKING SHINGLE Filed Feb. 4, 1927 ZSheetS-Shee'c 2 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE NAASON Z. BUTTERIC'K, 0F MIAMI, FLORIDA IN TERLOCKING SHINGLE .Application led February 4, 1927. Serial No. 165,972.

This invention relates to prepared interlocking shingles such as are used on the roofs and sides of houses.

The principal objects of the invention are to provide an improved interlocking shingle which can be cut from a sheet of material of appropriate width and length without any waste of material from spaces left between adjacentshingles and which, when laid, is

.10 of such construction that it interlocks with adjacent shingles in a novel manner and yet presents to the eye the appearance iven by the ordinary rectangular shingles W en laid in vertical courses.

With these and other objects in view the invention will now be described in its preferred form and set forth as particularly claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of a sheet of material showing the manner of cutting the shingles therefrom without waste.

Figure 2 is a plan view of a single shingle of this character ready for laying.

Figure 8 is a view taken at right angles to a portion of a roof' or the like and showing the appearance adorded by a number of the shingles when interlocked.

Figure 4 is a detailfview of several of the shingles showing how they are interlocked.

These shingles have the general shape of a keystone and yare preferably cut from a strip of material of suitable length and having a width which is a multiple of the length of the desired size of shingle, the width being shown in Figure 1 as twice the length ofthe shingle. Each of these shingles consists of an upper substantially rectangular portion 10, an intermediate trapezodial portion 11 whereof the diagonal side edges 12 are at an angle of forty-five degrees to the short vertical side edges 13 prolonged of the upper portion 10, and a lower substantially rectangular portion 14. Hence the contour of the shingle above the center line is a reversed duplicate of that below, whereby the shingles can be cut from a Continuous strip without any waste. The diagonal side edegs areix iared more than the taper of the shingle as a Whole to compensate for the vertical portions. The height of the portions 10 and 14 are equal and the shingles are cut from the strip alternately in upright and inverted portions as shown in Figure l, the lower portion 14 being provided at its lower corners with tabs 15 which are cut from the portion 10 of the adjacent shingle thus leaving notches 16 in the upper corners lof these adjacent shingles. In the cutting as thus arranged the upper portions 10 of two shingles are spaced a distance equal to the width of the portion 14 in an intermediate shingle as can clearly be seen by reference to Figure 1. Due to this method of cutting .the only waste that occurs in a sheet'is at the extreme end of each row cut from such sheet.

The lower portion 14 of each shingle is provided with short vertical side edges 17 approximately one-third the height of the entire shingle and at the junction of each side edge 12 and a respective sideedge 17 there is formed an upwardly directed notch 18. Similarly at the junction of each side edge 17 with a respective locking tab 15 there is formed a downwardly directed slit 19. The lower vertical side edgesA determine the vertical spacing between vsuccessive rows of shingles on the completed roof, being substantially one-third of a distance equal to the vertical dimension of the shingle minus the vertical dimension of said notches.

These shingles are made from any suitable material having the requisite degree of llexibility to permit bending of the tabs and the points formed between the side edges 12 and the notches 18. In laying the shingles, one shingle is placed in position as shown at A in Figure 4. A shingle B is then taken and 011e of its tabs l5 is inserted beneath the appropriate edge 17 of the rst shingle. The

shingle B is then moved upwardly until the slit 19 of shingle B intcrlocks with the notch 18 of shingle A. A third shingle C is now taken and the tab 15 of this third shingle is inserted beneath the edge 17 of shingle B after which the shingle C is moved upwardly until its slit 19 interlocks with the notch 18 of shingle C. Owing to the construction of the tabs 19 with narrow slits which are alined with the side edges ofthe lower portion, the inner side of the slit being a continuation of the edge 17, the bottom of each shingle is irremovably interlocked with the adjacent shingles when it is slid up 1nto position. It is absolutely impossible to lift the bottom of the shingle so that in a gale or even in a hurricane the shingles will remain firmly interlocked, which is not true of any prior shingles with which I am familiar. Hence it is unnecessary to resort to the use of nails or other fastening devices at the lower edges of the shingles. Thus when laid the edges 17 will be aligned in the several shingles in each vertical row and these edges will also be aligned with the adjacent corresponding edges of the shingles in the adjacent rows. 'lhe bottom edges 20 of the shingles in adjacent rows will, however, be staggered as shown in Figure 3 so that the appearance of the shingles when laid will be that of a number of rows of shingles of equal width laid in vertical courses and exposing square lower parts, the bottom edges of the shingles in one course being staggered with respect to the bottom edges of the shingles in adjacent courses. Obviously, as many shingles may be laid as are necessary to cover the entire surface to be shingled by continuing the method laid out with respect to Figure 4.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new. is:

1. A shingle of the class described consisting of a sheet of material having an upper substantially rectangular portion, an intermediate trapezoidal portion and a lower substantially rectangular portion of a width equal to the minor parallel ed e of the trapezoidal portion, the shingle being notched at the junction of the side edges of the trapezoidal and lower portions and the lower portion having lateral tabs at its lower corners provided with slits having their inner and outer edges alind with the side edges of said lower portion and at the junctions of said side edges and tabs, said upper portion having notches in the eXtreme upper corners, said notches leaving the necessary material to form said tabs, whereby the shingles can be cut from a continuous strip without any waste.

2. A shingle of the class described consistin of a sheet of material having an upper su stantially rectangular portion, an intermediate trapezoidal portion and a lower substantially rectangular portion of a width equal to the minor parallel edge of the trapezoidal portion, the shingle being notched at the junction of the side edges of the trapezoidal and lower portions and the lower portion having lateral tabs at its lower corners provided with slits having their inner and outer edges alined with the side edges of said lower ortion and at the junctions of said side e ges and tabs, said lower and upper portions being of equal height and the side edges of the trapezoidal portion being at aii angle of forty-live degrees with the side edges prolonged of the upper and lower portions.

3. A shingle of the class described consisting of a sheet of material having an upper substantially rectangular portion, an intermediate trapezoidal portion and a lower substantially rectangular portion of a width equal to the minor parallel edge of the trapezoidal portion, the shingle beln'g notched at the junction of the side edges of the trapezoidal and lower portions and the lower portion having lateral tabs at its lower corners provided with slits having their inner and outer edges alined with the side edges of said lower portion and at the junctions of said side edges and tabs, said lower and upper portions being of equal height and the side edges of the trapezoidal portion being at an angle of forty-live degrees with the side edges prolonged of the upper and lower portions, said upper portion having notches in its upper corners corresponding in size and shape to said tabs7 whereby the shingles can be eut from a continuous strip without any waste.

4. In a shingle as set forth in claim 1, said upper and lower portions being of equal height, and the lower portion being substantially one half the width of the upper portion.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

NAASON Z. BUTTERICK. 

